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In
Islam, the Arabic word Sunnah has come to denote the way
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the Messenger of Allah, lived his
life. The or Sunnah is the second source of Islamic
jurisprudence, the first being the Quran. Both sources are
Indispensable; one cannot practice Islam without
consulting both of them. The Arabic word Hadith (pl. Ahadith)
is very similar to Sunnah, but not identical. A Hadith is
a narration about the life of the Prophet (PBUH) or what
he approved - as opposed to his life itself, which is the
Sunnah as already mentioned.
In M. M. Azami's Studies in Hadith Methodology and
Literature, the following precise definition of a Hadith
is given,
According
to Muhaddithiin [scholars of Hadith -ed.] it stands for
'what was transmitted on the authority of the Prophet,
his deeds, sayings, tacit approval, or description of
his Sifaat (features) meaning his physical appearance.
However, physical appearance of the Prophet is not
included in the definition used by the jurists.'
Thus Hadith
literature means the literature which consists of the
narrations of the life of the Prophet and the things
approved by him. However, the term was used sometimes in
much broader sense to cover the narrations about the
Companions [of the Prophet -ed.] and Successors [to the
Companions -ed.] as well.
The explosion of Islam in the 7th and 8th centuries
confronted Islamic scholars with a daunting task: to
preserve the knowledge of the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH).
Hence the science of Hadith evaluation was born. We
recommend that you read the "Introduction to the
Science of Hadith" below to understand the tremendous
efforts that were required to sift the true reports from
the false reports. The success of the early scholars is
also captured below by some collections of Hadith.
For a collection of most Ahadeth of the prophet Muhammad,
please click here...
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